Highlands Ranch - Alternative Fuel City of the Future

On a personal note, here’s what we have done to reduce our overall dependence on foreign oil and 3rd party energy sources at our home:

1. Purchased a 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid. Forecasting a 60% reduction in annual gasoline consumption. Annual forecasted fuel savings based upon 15,000 miles a year, mainly city driving @ $3.20 per gal

Formerly-owned SUV - 12mpg - consumes 1,154 gallons of gasoline and costs $3,693 a year

2008 Ford Escape Hybrid - 32mpg - consumes 469 gallons of gasoline and costs $1,501 a year.

Annualized Gas Savings: $2,192 Factor in the $2,000 AWD federal tax credit, the hybrid will pay for itself in 2 years or less.

2. Replaced builder-quality furnace with a TRANE XV90 that is rated with up to 93%+ AFUE and is ENERGY STAR® rated. After one year of operation, reduced natural gas consumption by 18% (even though the 2006-07 winter was a bit colder than the previous winter.)

3. Replaced builder-quality 10 SEER (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio) a/c unit with a TRANE XL19i and has a SEER rating of up to 19.50. The XL19i has two compressors: one for milder weather and a second larger compressor for those extremely hot days. This unit is also ENERGY STAR® rated. After one year of operation, reduced electrical consumption by 45%

Next To Do’s:

4. Toto Ultramax toilets that will reduce the tank fill up from 3.5 gallons to 1.6 gallons (and get as low as 0.9 gallons per flush) and minimize/eliminate multiple flushings that the typical builder-grade toilets experience. Forecasted annual water savings to be a reduction of 15,725 gallons of water per year and a reduction in waste water treatment. If 1,000 Highlands Ranch homes switched to a Toto toilet, annual water consumption savings is over 15, 725,000 gallons of water (based on a family size of five.)

5. Replace indoor standard lights with fluorescent bulbs. Outdoor front porch already is fluorescent.

We received requests on how to get the “Future City of Highlands Ranch Alternative Fuel/Renewable Energy logos. Below are the four color, two color and black & white versions for downloading. Just right click the logo you want and then do a “save as” to your file.

The Incorporation of Highlands Ranch 100% Focused on Energy Independence

Five TRHS seniors joined together (Kush Argwal, John Callahan, Phil Clukies, Andy Furze, and myself Ashleigh Warntjes) last fall to research the various issues to incorporate Highlands Ranch under the energy platform. The three major strategic outcomes of incorporation are: 1. secure Highlands Ranch’s energy security for the next generation, 2. reduce and eliminate our dependence on 3 rd party energy sources and 3. take Highlands Ranch “off the grid” by the year 2020.

On Friday, April 27, 2007, all five of us gave our senior board presentations to a panel of reviewers. In addition to the panel judges, Ford Motor Company’s Director of Environmental Policy & Special Projects was in attendance. We had a Ford Flex Fuel Vehicle display outside the school’s entrance and Ford is also conducting “Ford Clean Tech Energy Week” presentations in our high school science classes the week of April 30.

On Tuesday, May 1, 2007, in cooperation with Burt Automotive Network and the South Metro Chamber of Commerce, we presented our “Future City of Highlands Ranch Energy Efficiency” senior project to a diverse group of about 60 individuals/businesses. In attendance was Xcel Energy, Merrill Lynch, Saunders Construction, GMAC, Bank of the West and a few clean tech businesses. Audience feedback was extremely positive and enthusiastic.

On behalf of my senior project team, we would like to thank the South Metro Chamber of Commerce and Burt Automotive Network for exploring summer internship opportunities for us with companies that are in the energy-related field.

The “Future City of Highlands Ranch senior research project was educational and it raised my interest in wanting to pursue environmental engineering studies at the Colorado School of Mines this coming fall.

Contributed by: Ashleigh Warntjes